Top of Mind Thursday August 1, 2013: A Rose By Any Other Name

I’m often asked how important it really is to have a strong brand. Isn’t it enough to have a great product or service?

Here’s a real-life example of the power of brand. J.K. Rowling, noted author of the Harry Potter book series, decided to write a mystery under the nom de plume of Robert Galbraith.

The book, The Cuckoo’s Calling, sold less than 500 copies in its first three months of availability. However, once Rowling was outed as the book’s real author, sales went from a measly 43 copies in early July to 17,662 copies the following week. Last week the book was ranked #1 best seller on Amazon.

This may be an extremely well written book, but the quality of the writing hasn’t changed since the title was published. Nor were there changes to distribution, packaging, promotion or even book reviews. The only thing that changed was the knowledge that this volume was written by Rowling.

That’s the power of a strong brand.

Does your organization have a powerful brand? Or are your offerings languishing in obscurity, rather than hitting the best seller list?

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